Adventure at Canterlot High - Into the woods

Once the old dock was completely gone, everyone was already building the new one.

“Huh, nice hammer.” Applejack said to Rainbow, who was hammering some nails into the boards. “Where did you get it?”

“Uh, duh. The toolbox?” Rainbow replied.

“Hah, that's cool.” Applejack replied. “I made mine.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes with a bland look.

“Now you're just showing off.” Aria chimed in with a roll of her eyes while Sonata giggled.

Timber was working on the lanterns while Twilight stood back and observed.

“Making lanterns out of solar-powered garden lights!” Twilight said, clearly impressed. “Pretty crafty there, Timber!”

“You think that's crafty? You should see my macaroni art.” Timber boasted. “I'm like the Picasso of noodles.” Twilight giggled in response.

At a nearby picnic table, Tristen, dressed in some fresh clothes, was doodling in his sketchbook.

"Is this seat taken?"

Tristen looks ahead and began blushing upon seeing Gloriosa standing in front of him.

“O-Oh… no.” Tristen replied sheepishly. “Be my guest.”

Gloriosa sits in front of Tristen and examines the sketch he was currently working on. "Oh? You draw?"

"Y-Yeah..." Tristen replied bashfully. "Ever since I was little, I was skilled with a pencil and a sheet of paper.”

"I see." Gloriosa chuckled, blushing a bit. "The only thing I can ever draw are stick figures."

Tristen chuckled. “Hey, I'm not one to judge." Tristen replied casually.

Timber watched the interaction between his sister and Tristen, both smiling in a knowing manner.

“All right, now.” Celestia called out to everyone. “You've made a lot of progress, but it's going to be getting dark soon. We can pick this up tomorrow between our other camp activities.”

“Everyone, get cleaned up,” Gloriosa chimed in, “and we'll gather by the fire pit at eight to share s'mores and scary stories!”

Behind a nearby tree, Leshy gazed at Tristen with a scowl. His eyes emit a faint green glow as he watches.

"And that's when she looked down and realized she was wearing purple socks with a burgundy dress!" Rarity said, replied in terror. "Purple and burgundy, darlings! The same color family!" Rarity screamed while the others weren't as spooked.

“Uh... that was a terrifying story.” Applejack said sarcastically.

Rainbow chuckles in response. “Yeah, I'm terrified she'll try to tell it again.”

“I'd rather not hear it again.” Aria muttered out.

“Anyone else have a spooky story?” Luna suggested.

"I have one," Timber chimed in. "But I'm warning you, you might as well hug a friend now." Timber advised in a smug manner, "That's how scary it is!"

"Oh dear…" Fluttershy uttered after a quick gasp, allowing Spike to jump into her arms.

Snips and Snails immediately embraced each other while shivering, followed by Bulk taking them into his arms tightly as his teeth clattered out of fright.

"It's time I told you about the legend… of Gaea Everfree…" Timber said to the campers in a spooky tone. "Many years ago, my great-grandparents came to this forest. Seeing its beauty, they decided that it would be the perfect place for a camp. But once they started building, strange things started to happen.

Tristen listened on with intrigue rather than fear as he listened. “One pitch black night, when the wind was howling, a tree branch crashed through the roof of their cabin!" Timber continued. "They screamed and ran outside, only to see the giant creature rising from the earth! She had wild hair like the roots of a tree. Her mouth had jagged rock teeth, and her eyes were pools of black tar. But her aura shimmered like diamonds. Anywhere she went, she left a trail of gem dust in her wake. Trembling, my great-grandparents asked who she was and what she wanted. In a deep and hollow voice, she told them that her name was Gaea Everfree – an ancient spirit who held domain over the forest, and that my great-grandparents were trespassing on her land."

'Ooh, this just got good.' Tristen thought to himself with excitement.

"They begged her to let them stay and build their camp, to share this wonderful place with others. Gaea Everfree finally agreed but warned them that they would not be able to keep it forever. Someday, she will return and reclaim the forest as her own." Timber Spruce finished his tale. "So if you see a trail of gem dust, you'll know that it is… GAEA EVERFREE!"

All of a sudden, a pair of green eyes appeared from behind him, causing everyone to scream out of shock.

But luckily the figure revealed itself to be Gloriosa. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you!" she apologized, walking towards them.

"Then… why'd you come out of the bushes?" Sunset asked.

"I took the scenic route," Gloriosa replied. "Because the forest is beautiful at night! But no one else should do it without a guide, 'kay?"

“Gotta admit, Timber.” Tristen began. “That certainly got me jumping.” He then had a smirk. “But the one I've got in store will make your blood run cold.”

“Oh?” Timber smirked, taking that as a challenge. “Then go right ahead, man."

"Ooh, now I'm interested." Adagio said with intrigue. "What do you have in mind?”

Tristen chuckled in response. “Well, listen and I'll tell you.” Tristen cleared his throat and began telling his tale. “Many years ago, there lived a spiteful man who was not a very pleasant guy to say the least. He would cause fights, vandalize buildings, he had quite a nasty reputation.”

As Tristen told his story, the others listened carefully. “One night however, he was about to know that karma comes to those who do bad deeds. After vandalizing a local church, the pastor confronted him and said: “The wrath of God will strike you down one day! And sooner thank you think!” To which he responded with: “Yeah! Only if a demon comes to drag me to hell first!”

“Oh my.” Rarity muttered.

“Have you ever heard of the phrase be careful what you wish for?” Tristen asked with a grin. “Well, that's a lesson our guy was about to learn. The hard way. When he got home, he heard the phone ring. But upon answering, all he heard was a sinister voice saying,” Tristen clears his throat before speaking in the best demonic voice he could muster, “Once you've been to Hell, you never come back.”

That last line really unsettled the others. “I… I already don't like where this is heading.” Fluttershy whisperer in terror.

“Soon after he hung up, he heard a sharp knock at the door." Tristen knocked against the log he sat on, making three loud knocks for emphasis. "He grabs a knife, nutted up, and slowly made his way towards the door. But upon opening it… there was nobody there.” Tristen continued as the others listened carefully. “Relieved, he closed the door, thinking it was probably some sort of prank.” Tristen then chuckled. “Oh, if only that were the case. Because the moment he turned around, he saw it.”

Rarity squeaked in terror as she held onto Applejack, shaking like a leaf.

“It was nothing like he had ever seen before. It resembled a human, but it was anything but.” Tristen explained with a grin. “Its skin was deathly pale like a corpse, its eyes were bloodshot, its hands were stained in blood and armed with talons, its clothes were tattered and worn, and on its forehead was an upside down cross.”

Snips and Snails were quaking in fear upon hearing the description, even Timber and Gloriosa were fear stricken as they held each other.

“The demon stared blankly at him before flashing a wicked smile, showing off its shark-like teeth.” Tristen continued as the others listened on with their terror increasing. “The man was so terrified that he ultimately passed out from the shock. But even then, his ears were filled with what sounded like a heavily distorted scream of terror mixed with a deep voice speaking in a foreign tongue. When he regained consciousness, he found himself in his bedroom.” The others said nothing, didn't move, they just listened to Tristen's horrific story. “And for a moment he felt a wave of relief wash upon him, realizing what he saw was only a nightmare.” Tristen then had a creepy smile. “Or at least, that's what he had hoped.”

“Uh-oh…” Pinkie murmured in horror while Luna and Celestia both held to each other.

“What he saw on the ceiling above him made him reconsider. Written in blood were the words, “Once you've been to Hell, you never come back”. The very same phrase he heard on the phone. With terror gripping him, he slowly looks ahead. And standing across the room was the demon. Smiling at him in a wicked manner. No. It was no nightmare. It was real. And the last thing he saw was the demon lunging at him.”

Tristen then lurched forward, emitting a demonic noise with his hands outstretched, making the others scream out in horror. And moments later, Tristen laughed out in amusement upon seeing their reactions.

“That was not funny!” Rarity scoffed angrily. “I swear, you nearly gave me a heart attack!”

“I think I need to change my pants.” Snips muttered out, making Snails look at him in shock and shove him away.

“You should have seen your faces!” Tristen said in between laughs, rolling off the log he sat on.

Gloriosa cleared her throat after a brief moment of silence. "All right, everybody, time to head to your tents."

“Yeah, I'm definitely going to have trouble sleeping tonight after hearing a story like that.” Pinkie said, a bit creeped out.

“Ditto.” Alex replied in agreement.

(Later)

It was now midnight, and Tristen had woken up. With a yawn he gets out of bed and walks into the woods, but once he was a foot away, he stops at a nearby tree before pulling the hem of his pants down to... "empty the tank" let's just say.

What he failed to notice was Leshy watching him from behind.

Wasting no time, Leahy pulled up an acorn before it emits a faint green aura. “Dispose of him.” Leshy whispered to the acorn before planting it into the ground. And moments later, the acorn began to sprout into a series of brambles.

When Tristen was finished, he heard loud stomps behind him. He looks behind him with a tired expression, his eyes wide upon seeing a large humanoid tree-like creature before staring at him.

"What in the…" Tristen uttered in shock as the humanoid tree grabs at him. "Hey! Put me down, you walking piece of firewood!”

The tree responded to that by tossing Tristen onto the ground, making him land in a thud.

Tristen groaned in pain as he got back up. “Alright, that's it!” Tristen reached for the Omnitrix, only to be enveloped in a purple flash.

“Spyder!” The familiar tiny arachnoid declared before examining himself. “Oh, come on!”

The tree monster raised its right foot in an attempt to stomp Spyder like a bug. With quick reaction time, Spyder presses into the symbol and changes into Saw Horse. Then with quick succession, he sliced the tree monster’s leg off.

“Talk about walking the razor’s edge, am I right?” Saw Horse said jokingly before reverting back to Tristen.

“What the…?” Tristen asked out in disbelief, looking at the Omnitrix. “What the hell happened?!”

To make it worse, the tree monster regrew a new leg to replace its old one and growled angrily. The tree monster then grabs Tristen and tossed him, making him crash against a nearby tree. As Tristen was recovering, the tree monster rushed at him. But out of nowhere, Timber swooped in with an axe in hand.

Tristen watches on in shock as Timber swing his axe at the monstrous tree. The tree monster was about to swing its claws in retaliation, but Timber tossed the axe, the edge of the axe wedged right into its forehead.

Shortly afterwards, the tree monster fell to its knees and collapsed onto the ground. Tristen was shocked at the sight, but he's suddenly pelted by a purple cloud.

“Gah! What… what wasss thaaaaa….” Tristen trails off as he feels delirium take hold before falling asleep.

Once Tristen was completely out cold, Willow walks over and picks him up.

“What the hell was that?!” Timber asked angrily towards Leshy. “Have you lost your mind?!”

"That boy is nothing but trouble, Timber!" Leshy shot back.

"So you're just going to have him killed?!" Timber replied, still furious. "Leshy, we're running a camp! Not a slaughterhouse!”

Willow walked besides Timber, equally as upset with her brother. “He's right, brother!”

"There is something you should know about him!" Leshy fired back.

"I don't care!" Timber shot back.

"Leshy, I don't want to lose our home too!” Willow retorted. “And I know Timber and Gloriosa don't want to either, but killing a camper out of paranoia is not going to help!"

"I am not taking any chances!" Leshy shot back. "That boy will only get in the way, and I am certain those witches accompanying him will as well."

“You mean Twilight and her friends?” Timber asked, clearly angry at the insult towards Twilight.

“What involvement do they have in this?!” Willow asked, her patience wearing thin.

"I've sensed something from them!" Leshy responded, casting a glare towards Timber. "And don't think I haven't noticed your infatuation with the one in spectacles!"

"Hey!" Timber growled in anger. "You leave Twilight out if this you judgmental jackass!" Willow looks at Timber in shock upon hearing that Leshy was even angrier now.

"I’ll tell you one thing, Timber Spruce!” Leshy said warningly, poking at Timber’s chest. "If you were my son, I would have you over my knee for speaking to me in such a fashion!"

“Enough!” Willow got in-between the two, wanting to defuse the fight. "Timber, head back to camp! I'll handle this!”

Timber scoffed in response before storming his way out. With Timber finally gone, Willow glared towards Leshy. “Leshy, this madness must stop!”

“You are in no position to give me orders!” Leshy fired back.

“I am when it involves the wellbeing of campers!” Willow countered angrily.

Leshy, dangerously near his breaking, conjured a sword composed of plant matter and crystals before aiming it at Willow. “I am warning you right now, Willow!”

Willow was taken back by her brother's actions. “You'd dare point your weapon at your own flesh and blood?!”

“If you continue to question my authority, then I will have no other choice!” Leshy warned his sister. “Consider this my one and only warning. Because you and I both know that I’m not as merciful compared to you!”

And with all of that said, Leshy dissipated his sword before storming off. Willow watches her brother walk away, still upset by how her brother has been acting as of late.